11 Children
16 Parents
1 Cubic meters of Spruce
4 Upcycled wardrobe panels
4 Stems of Hazel Coppice
1 Forests (within a 15 mile radius)
1 Saw Mill
1 Chain Saw
Many Folk tales
1 Community Workshop (The Bridport Shed)
11 New memory boxes
Endless memories







Early in 2023, we offered a series of weekend workshops for young members of ASCape, a local charity that supports youth with austism and social anxiety and their families. Participants from 8 to 25 learned methods for working with wood to construct memory boxes using local wood from the forest of Hooke Park.

To help us get to know one another, we asked participants to bring an item that has meaning to them, something they might store in their memory box. With these in mind, box designs were chosen and participants began crafting their pieces using squares, saws, drills and jigs. Each found ways to personalise their boxes as they made them Using tree forks for handles, creating a latch for the lid or putting windows in the walls for their toy hamsters new apartment.

After the workshops, members reunited from each weekend for a celebration in Hooke Park’s woods and a storytelling walk with Martin Maudesly. We were delighted to guide the group through our former home and workshops. As we walked the woods, we continued to explore themes of memory with Martin’s enchanted stories, learning that only do objects hold memories, but landscapes do too.